A Plan Gone Awry
by Eon the Dragon Mage
Summary: Guilty over the death of so many, and offered a rare opportunity, Harry Potter returns to his 11 year old body to relive his life, with a plan laid out for the new future. That is, until the Sorting Hat throws a spanner in the works. DH compliant.


A Plan Gone Awry

Chapter One

Another Turn of the Wheel

_There weren't many people left now._

'_Moon' …, 'Nott' …, 'Parkinson' …, then a pair of twin girls, 'Patil' and 'Patil' …, then 'Perks, Sally-Anne' …, and then, at last –_

'_Potter, Harry!'_

_As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall._

'Potter_, did she say?'_

'The_ Harry Potter?'_

_The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited._

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, _The Sorting Hat_, page 90.

"Hello, Mr Potter," said a small voice in his ear. "I'm very sorry about this…"

Harry had just enough time to ask, "Wha-" before blinding agony tore into his mind.

His hands flew to clutch his skull, pulling at the suddenly vicelike hat. Distantly, he heard someone screaming, before realising that he was making the sound. Suddenly, something gave way in his mind, and he _felt_ a new presence, even as swirling darkness reached out to overwhelm him.

* * *

Three beings, without form or substance, floated and fell in a non-existent void, watching as invisible images flashed in the black light.

_What… what _is_ this?_

_That which was, is and will be again – and that which will not, cannot, must not happen, ever…_

_Gryffindor originally, I see… well now, you are stubborn, aren't you…_

_Whoa! Hogwarts is brilliant! And I have friends here! Ron and Hermione and Neville and Hagrid and Hedwig!_

_Loyalty, hmm, yes, incredibly loyal…_

_Snape's trying to steal the Stone!_

_Not quite…_

_Incredible deductive work… very intelligent…_

_Voldemort's on his HEAD! Oh god, he's burning!_

_Don't give him any sympathy. It's no more than he deserves._

…

_Dobby's… weird. But the Burrow's…_

_Like home? Yeah, it is…_

_The Chamber of Secrets… Bloody hell!_

_Rogue Bludger, Parseltongue, Polyjuice… busy year, huh._

_Clever plan, very clever plan…_

_T.M. Riddle. I know that name… No! It can't be Hagrid! That's the stupidest thing I've ever hea- Hermione! NO!_

_She's alright. No lasting harm, thank Merlin._

_They can't put Hagrid in jail! They can't take _Dumbledore_ away!_

_They can. And they did, the fools…_

_Spiders… ruddy hell, BIG spiders! Ron'd be terrified… _

_He was. But he still stayed with us._

_A basilisk? Hermione, you're brilliant!_

_She is, isn't she?_

… _Ginny! No, please don't be dead! … Riddle? Wha- Voldemort… _

_Fawkes saves the day..._

_Oh hell, the Basilisk! The Sword! Yes! We did it!_

_Yes we did. And everyone's fine in the end. Except Lockhart…_

…

_Sirius Black?_

_Wait. Don't judge. Learn everything first._

_Patience, very good…_

_Ugh, Dementors…_

_Yes, they are nasty, aren't they?_

_Professor Lupin's brilliant though._

_Isn't he, just._

_A certain disregard for the rules, yes indeed…_

_What! He… he was their friend! And he betrayed them! He was their friend!_

_Yes, he was. Keep watching._

_Professor Lupin's helping him! Why, would he… What. That's insane, Pettigrew's dead, he already killed him. The map must be – he's alive… Black didn't do it, it was him… We can leave the Dursleys and live with Sirius!_

_I'm sorry, but we can't._

_Oh no… no, they have to believe us! They can't ju- what the hell is that?_

_Time Turner._

_What on earth is… oh, wow! I cast the Patronus! Sirius is safe! Yes!_

_Excellent plan, excellent execution…_

…

_The World Cup looks amazing! But… Death Eaters!_

_They do tend to ruin things don't they?_

_The Triwizard Tournament… this isn't going to end well, is it?_

_No, it didn't. It will end horribly._

_Ambition. A very large amount of ambition…_

_My name came out! What!_

_Unfortunately, we have no choice._

_DRAGON!_

_Clever, well done…_

…_I still prefer it to dancing._

_The Lake, The Maze... No! No nononono!_

_I'm sorry._

_Cedric's dead! He's back!_

…

_Dementors? The Ministry is full of idiots._

_Agreed._

_Order of the Phoenix at 12 Grimmauld Place… Sirius! Wait, what's going on?_

_You'll see…_

… _Umbridge? Wha- bu- she's going to get people killed! Voldemort's back! What's wrong with her?_

_Don't worry. We take care of it._

… _Dumbledore's Army. Ha, go Neville!_

_Let's not underestimate him, shall we?_

_Leading and teaching, hmm…_

_Oh no, Mr Weasley!_

_He's okay. They got there in time._

Snape _teaches me Occlumency._

_Yeah, that doesn't end well… there, you see._

_Oh… He's got Sirius! We've got to get him._

_No, he doesn't. Worst mistake of our lives._

_Neville, Luna, Ginny… There's a prophecy? Why… _SIRIUS_ NO!_

_I'm so sorry._

_No, dammit… Damn you Kreacher!_

…

_That's the prophecy? Him or us?_

_Yes. Him or us._

…

_What's Malfoy doing?_

_Making the worst mistake of his life._

_Slug Club? Ugh…_

_My sentiments exactly._

_Who's the Half Blood Prince?_

_You'll see._

_We're learning about Voldemort's past? Why?_

_Because it's important. Watch._

_Horcruxes? He tore his soul! That's …_

_Evil? Yes._

_Got the Locket! The Dark Mark over Hogwarts! Who's dead?_

_No-one, yet._

_Then why- _DUMBLEDORE_ NO! SNAPE KILLED HIM! TRAITOR! COWARD!_

…

_That's dangerous… they shouldn't risk themselves for me._

_But they do, and will._

_Hedwig! Moody! Dammit! Damn him!_

_He already is._

_The Ministry fell… it's all going wrong… Regulus took the Locket? Umbridge! _

_Now the fun begins…_

_Well thought out… detailed planning… careful, hmm…_

_That, went better than it should have._

_We were very lucky._

… _He left? Ron just left us! Why would he…?_

_The Horcrux._

_Godric's Hollow…_

_Bad idea._

_My wand… Why didn't Dumbledore tell us?_

_It was his life, not ours._

_The Sword! Ron!_

_One more down._

_The Deathly Hallows…_

_Aren't all they're cracked up to be…_

_I broke Taboo… Malfoy Manor… Luna! Ollivander! _DOBBY_!_

_Dobby the Free Elf. Rest in Peace. We won't let you down this time._

_Remus made me Godfather?_

_Teddy Lupin, our Godson._

… _Voldemort has the Elder Wand._

_We have the Sword._

_Gringotts, hmmm… ambitious, very ambitious, and requires much cunning…_

_We got the Cup, but lost the Sword…_

_That's just our luck, yeah?_

_We rode a _dragon_?_

_That was fun._

_It's at Hogwarts. The last one's at Hogwarts._

_Just in reach._

_We fight?_

_We fight._

_It's in the Room of Requirements! They took care of the Cup! Only two more! _

_Malfoy's not so bad in the end…_

_The Diadem's gone. Just the Snake… _FRED!

_Not again. Never again._

_Snape's dead… Just…_

_Sad._

REMUS! TONKS! _NO! NONONONONO!_

_Now, the memories._

_He… he loved Mum?_

_Always._

_We have to die._

_We're a Horcrux._

_Oh Colin…_

_He shouldn't have been there._

_The Stone. They're here for us._

_They're always here for us._

… _Why didn't we die?_

_He took our blood. He took Mum's blood. We can't die._

_We did it! He's finished! It's over!_

_Not yet._

_Slytherin shunned and scorned and spat on. Unacceptable…_

_What? What's left?_

_Teddy._

_No. They didn't. Please, no._

_Cedric and Sirius and Dumbledore and Hedwig and Moody and Dobby and Fred and Remus and Tonks and Snape and Colin and Teddy. So many. Too many._

_No._

_No._

No.

* * *

Harry awoke, opening his eyes to find only darkness. For a moment, he panicked, fearing that the spell had blinded him, before realising that he was staring at the inside of the Sorting Hat. The soft voice whispered in his ears, "Welcome back, Mr Potter." A wave of elated relief passed through him.

He levered himself up from where he had landed. Suddenly, he felt a hand grasp his shoulder. Two sets of ingrained reactions screamed at him, and he reflexively jerked away from the unseen grip.

"Mr Potter?" he heard Professor McGonagall, and relaxed. He gently pushed the now loose Sorting Hat out, allowing himself to look up at the Head of Gryffindor House. She looked concernedly down at him, with Madam Pomfrey hovering uncertainly at her shoulder.

"I'm alright, Professor," Harry said, disguising his near irresistible urge to grin maniacally by giving a slight grimace as he rubbed the back of his head. He could already feel a lump forming, from his fall off the stool. McGonagall pursed her lips and Pomfrey bustled forward, kneeling beside him with a steely glint in her eye.

"I'll be the one to decide that, Mr Potter," she said shortly, waving her wand dizzyingly around his head. She clicked her tongue. "No sign of concussion or serious damage, just some bruising." Almost without thinking, she moved on to the rest of his body as well, frowning at her results. "There are bruises of various ages all over. It's almost as if -" She suddenly stopped talking, and, giving Harry a strange look, made a strange motion with her wand. She paused, and remained motionless as she looked at her findings. Getting up, she held a hushed conversation with McGonagall, before turning back to Harry. With a flick of her wand, she healed the forming bruise, and then returned to her seat. Carefully, Harry re-seated himself, and the whispered conversations fell silent under the force of McGonagall's glare. He released the Hat, allowing it to fall back over his eyes, leaving him in darkness again.

"Another turn on the wheel, Mr Potter," the Sorting Hat whispered. "You are very unique, indeed. Now, where to put you?"

Harry's brows slammed together. 'I'm already a Gryffindor. Put me back in my House.'

To his surprise, he felt the Hat laugh into his mind. "Oh no, I'm afraid I can't do that." Harry felt a flush of fear.

'I need to be in Gryffindor. Everything I planned depends on it.'

"I think you will be able to do just as well in SLYTHERIN!"


End file.
